The Ultimate in Angas Eye Candy!

•  I really had high hopes for it ever since the trailer came out: watching a group of Tondo thugs walking in an almost straight line, portrayed by the best under-rated Pinoy Actors (Baron Geisler, Ketchup Eusebio, Pen Medina…) shot in Black and White, with all the yosi smoke floating in the air, Gun fights under the rain in slow-mo..
• Never mind if the story was already retold several times or if the typical Pinoy action film cliches exist in the film, IT WAS THE ULTIMATE in Angas EYE-CANDY, something you’ll watch for the fight scenes and not the story itself (reminiscent of Suckerpunch)
• But then news of re-editing without the Director’s consent started to surface, so at the back of mind, I was thinking that it isn’t going to be great as it supposed to be, and I was literally identifying which of the scenes were “re-shoots”
• For all its worth, there were a lot of scenes that used the black and white medium effectively (i.e. using contrasts to make the scene look really pretty), Opening Credits were unusually stunning for a mainstream Pinoy Flick, glorious moments of slow-mo cinematography made for exciting gunfights - just for these scenes, and the fact that a Pinoy Film can achieve such an aesthetic – I’d say I got the most out of my 180 peso-ticket.
• What keeps it from being great: the awkward editing, acting (Seriously, Governor ER’s acting made me realize how hard it was to force yourself to cry, naawa ako sa kanya) – the use of Mad World as the background music at last gun battle - out of place, meyn! and probably the fact that somewhere there exists a better version of this film, a version that didn’t veer away from the vision of the person who conceptualized the film’s memorable moments.
• Cheers to Amay Bisaya, and yes, I’m one with the netizens clamoring for the release of the director’s cut version of this film

P.S. Interesting biographies of Manila’s Most Wanted in this blog, which includes what really happened to Asiong Salonga.

The Recto Book Sidewalk

In part 1 of this post, I detailed some steps on how you can sell your still popular or Really old pocketbooks. Now in part 2, I’ll be featuring the kind of books usually traded in the streets of Recto: Textbooks.

I was engineering student before, and I had a lot of Calculus, Math and Electronics textbooks, hardbound and softbound, gathering dust in my cabinet. So instead of occupying space, I decided to sell them, expecting to receive a significant amount. Even though I purchased the books around 2003 to 2005, they’re still Engineering Books – and they’re HARDBOUND. So I was expecting to at least get 1000 pesos for 5 books. Turned out I got 750 for 10 books. Much lower than I expected, but it is better than getting coins in exchange.

A bit disappointed, I asked Ate Cecille, the seller who I sold my books to,  for tips on what does she look for when buying books from people:

Textbooks for Sale!

1. The books’ edition – Students mostly buy textbooks from Recto in the hopes of getting their textbooks cheaper than commercial bookstores, so the buyers are on the lookout for the latest editions they can easily resell. The trick here is to sell your used textbooks right after you use them so you can fetch a higher price for them. Don’t be discouraged to sell older editions though, they still buy them because some people use older editions “as a reference” according to Ate Cecille.

2. Condition – The better the condition of the book – the higher the price.

3. Relevance / Demand / Rarity – The demand is high for Nursing and Engineering books, so they’ll fetch more buyers and higher rates. If the book is popular across schools (i.e. The Calculus Series), then you’ll find more willing buyers. In my experience, I had a hard time selling my hardbound Calculus book, probably because not a lot of Recto-goers can afford them – fortunately I was able to sell it to Ate Cecile,  whose stall is located inside the building. Which leads me to another tip..

4. Sell to the buyers inside the building – When I tried to sell a less popular textbook to a sidewalk buyer, what happened was the buyer went inside the building, asked the stall buyer what the price was, and then she returned, and told me the price. I figured from this that people in the sidewalks resell their books to those with the stalls – so its possible that you might get a higher price for your books when you go directly to the stall buyers.

While selling my books, I also managed to take a peek at the books being sold – seems like they really had everything – they had books by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, The Little Prince, the classics (or prescribed literature class reading). They were even selling Filipinana titles in there. I had a hard time fighting the urge to spend the money I just earned from selling. Bookworm paradise talaga ang Recto, both to those who would want to make a quick buck, or someone who’s looking for a bargain, or for literature hunters on the lookout for a steal or that one-of-a-kind find.

Read part 1 here.

The Tumblr Tree Planting meetup

Wow, its been years since I wrote anything here, and if I wrote anything, its book related – I’m starting to think that books are keeping me from doing things that I need to do. So the year’s winding down, and everything’s pretty crazy. For those who know me personally, they probably know of my adventures of jumping the IT ship and wading through the design world around April, and it has been 8 months since I did that. And now friends go, “So you’re a Designer now?”…uh, yeap, pretty much. (I still can’t believe I’m saying that, actually)

It really has been an adventure. I think I’ve met as much more people withing those 8 months than the people I’ve met for my entire life. Its like undergoing a Second Teenhood: studying, projects, internships, volunteering, going to tumblr meetups (apparently its the in-thing with kids these days), free concerts, household chores, and finally “graduating” from school. Luckily I still look the part and I could still pass for a 20-year old, unfortunately I do give off the ate-vibe.

Anyway, some observations and learning on past 7-month stints:

With the folks back at Atalyer Design, the studio I did an Intership with

1. I still a have long, long way to go -I thought that finishing a certificate program will make me much much better than my previous state. Well, not necessarily. I guess every fresh graduate feel this way: that you’re good, or at least a pretty decent designer. And then go apply, get hired, and then you find yourself actually struggling at work. I felt this during my internship, and I really hated the feeling of letting people down, and others having no choice but to pick up my slack. But then a designer at the internship said to me: “Ganyan talaga. Actually dapat matuwa ka nga na ganyan, kasi pag-nalampasan mo yan, ibig sabihin nun, gumagaling ka na. Pag hindi mo nararamdaman yun sa mga ka-trabaho mo, na bano ka, ibig sabihin nun wala kang natutunan.” (You should be happy about that feeling, because once you’ve surpassed that, it meant that you’re becoming better. If you didn’t feel that you’re not good compared to your colleagues, it means that your not going to learn anything from them). Accepting this as a fact also makes you humble enough to actually learn something, and follow the advice of someone before you. Aside from this one, whenever I encounter this experience, I was also told to:

2. Practice! Practice! Practice! - It might sound cliche but really, its not. The best designers are those who just kept doing what they liked doing, got better at it, and look where they are now. I guess that’s what doing things with a passion means, and doing what they do doesn’t feel like practice.  I do create something but I need a homework, a grade, an obligation to do it. And I think that shouldn’t be the case. Add to that the Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers quote that it takes 10000 hours of doing something to be good at it, and the T.Harv Eker’s creating new neural pathways by doing a thing more often so that things become more easier to do. Besides, I really could do with more practice, I need to make ideas and executions flow easier. In relation to this, you should also:

3. Never stop learning – At a linked-in group somewhere it said, if you do not learn, you die. True enough, there will be times at work when you have to learn how to make a certain effect in photoshop by reading a tutorial over the net and applying it immediately to work, or else, your team is dead meat. So learning Photoshop tricks beforehand will really do help you.

4. If it makes the work faster, why not? A college friend taunted me that I’m really not that good since all I knew about Photoshop was using Photoshop Brushes. Though that drove me to learn the Pen tool (dreaded among Photoshop newbies), I virtually stayed away from brushes, not knowing that even professional designers use them. I had this stigma that to be good, you need to do things the hard way. I told this story to my “bosses” at work and they said to me that: Grabe, Kung makakatulong naman sa trabaho, bakit mo naman hindi gagamitin yun? (If it makes the work faster, why not use it?)

Bumo-volunteer!

5. The Design Industry is Big, Really Big – As a typical newbie you often follow the people you idolize, but as you dig deeper you realize that no, your idols do not make up the whole creative scene of the Philippines. There are less popular but equally or more competent designers out there, and they’re scattered everywhere. They’re in advertising, magazines, print, doing freelance, doing web design, doing packaging, doing designs for clothing companies, outsourcing companies, tarp makers, located in the Visayas or in Mindanao, or in California or in Singapore or in New York or in Dubai. They’re on tumblr, behance, and ODesk.  They’re doing comics, toys, galleries or blogs. They’re in bazaars. I became a witness to the talent and the size when I did a stint as a volunteer at PGDA. At some point though, there will be a connection – somebody will idolize, loathe, or both, the popular ones.

6. Design varies across social classes, age or exposure. There’s a place for everything – I really find myself classifying the things I see here in Manila, and it really applies to a social class or a setting, depending on where your work will be used. A Designer’s work can fall under one or more of these categories.

a. Design na pang-Tarp – the designs you see posted in Salons, Spas, Debuts, and Birthdays, or sometimes, posters of government agencies. Designs that overkill Gradients and Outlines, placing black text above those gradients, super contrasting color combinations, desktop publishing fonts (Curlz MT anyone?). Now imagine applying that aesthetic in a Salon located in Greenbelt 5, would that Salon be patronized?

b. Design na Pang-Commercial – Much more professional looking graphics, the one you see in posters of softdrinks, billboards of clothing companies, telecom company ads. Subtle Gradients, pleasing to the eyes, much more color coordination, good choice of fonts. Doing this kind of design can probably land you a job in an outsourcing company, since this aesthetic is preferred by people overseas. Your design will have a wide range of audiences as well. Now imagine applying this to an artistic publication somewhere, will it be sold?

c. Design na Pang-Mayaman – Minimalist Fonts, Simple Clean Designs, good choice of paper. There’s a typical look, mukhang mamahalin. Now try placing that aesthetic in a Salon in your nearest Bayan somewhere. Will there be people daring to enter that salon?

d. Design na Pa-Art – Taste acquired from foreign sources. Whimsical text placed in circles, use of textures, can be usually seen in design/art circles tumblr pages, blogs of fashionistas or blog famous, hipsters, band posters, or applied to the DIY merchandise of merchandisers in bazaars such as those you see in Legaspi, Amorsolo or Cubao X. Design aesthetic of art school students and design fans. You might not that kind of design in a supermarket though, or you might not find that in the next telco poster.

Its funny, you can even see the gap between the rich and the poor, even in design. (Hmm, I should probably make a thesis about this). And if you’re the type of designer who can shift from one type of design to the next, I absolutely salute you. You are the ultimate.

7. Everything is a Balance between what your aesthetics as a designer, and what the client wants. Once in a while, this balance is overthrown, mostly in the favor of the client’s taste. Modifications are inevitable, but learn how to stand up for your design, at least have a reason for it. Because at the end of the day, they’re the ones that pay you. But I remember getting berated on modifying a designer’s work because the boss said so. I guess it is a matter of respect for the designer and the design, because there’s a reason why the design is that way.

8. Your work will speak for itself – Doesn’t matter whether you graduated from art school or not. What matters is your body of work. There are a lot of awesome self-taught designers out there, as well as there are graduates who are not that good either. Sometimes, I can’t help but compare myself to others, but the advice I often get, is that I don’t. Each person has his or her own talents. Whether they’re good or not, depends on how hard they worked to be one the level they are now.

Rene Azurin's Random Walks and Other Essays

Rene Azurin’s Random Walks and Other Essays: Ruminations of a So-So Manager contained mostly insights revolving around the subject of management and economics, save for matters such as time, money, billiards, New Age Thinking, and Memory. I enjoyed his work probably because I can relate with what he was talking about especially for the first half of the book. He was an Industrial Engineer, and he was discussing the motivations and the orgins of concepts such as Total Quality Management, Motion Economy and Just-In-Time in his essay – it had me saying..ah, bwiset, yun pala yung tinuturo samin nung ENPROMA (Engineering Production Management) nung College. I totally got it – and appreciated it – all those terms in college that seem exist just to be memorized. All because he was able to share the stories behind it. He also made a point regarding how today’s management books are just regurgitations of the Management Classics, which apparently no manager has the time to read – and how someone is probably making a profit out of these new management paradigms which were already said before anyway. He also introduce us to the stories of the Boardroom – where corporate people are likened to chickens – and how a board meeting usually goes, stories of how Ford and Toyota became the giants that they are. It make me appreciate my Engineering Days and my Industrial Engineering Subjects.

Lourd de Veyra's Super Panalo Sounds

And now with a topic on the other end of the spectrum, Lourd De Veyra writes about “Drugs-Drugs and Rock ‘n Roll” in his first novel, Super Panalo Sounds. Its about a band of 4 seemingly music geniuses who forms a band and their (mis) adventures – their bouts with reality, the thin line between genius and insanity. I’m really impressed on how the details of being drugged are written in detail. Similar to what I though about Ligo na U, Lapit na Me – though the writers said that they’re purely fictional – I can’t help but think the author had first hand experience of what its like to be “wired” on meth/shabu, or he wouldn’t be able to write such a vivid description on how feels. Or maybe he’s just a damn good writer.

It had me thinking – The only good guy in the Band – who out of sadness tries the stuff – and then ends up with the worst possible outcome, if you’re pretty much a good person all your life – and just for once – you had the temptation of trying something – just for the sake of trying it – cigarettes, jutes, or worst comes to worst, drugs – will you be able to handle it? Hindi ka ba maa-adik? Maybe that’s the risk of trying it, the risk of addiction. Isipin mo din, anu nga bang motivation ng tao para uminom, mag-yosi o mag-drugs? Para makalimutan ang problema, ang Gutom? To cultivate artistic genius – dahil ang mga greatest artist ay nakakagawa ng mga works na drug-induced? Paano sila nasimulan dito – nadaan nga ba sa “patikim-tikim”? If that’s the case then, putek, nakakatakot pala tumikim.

Anyway, I also particularly enjoyed this book because of the tender and descriptive moments. Like the scene where Milo the genius saxophonist feels real happiness playing his instrument for the old guy opposite his room – or when Vic prays in the church – in his Boysen Paint shirt – with matching jeepney noises. (Yes, a scene like that managed its way into the book). A good narrative for me is something that makes you feel that you are there, and I think the book did a good job of doing just that – whether making you feel how it is to be sabog or the sobriety of going to church early in the morning.

Pretty interesting reading these two works on the opposite side of the spectrum – yes, these two kinds of lives exist. On one side, we have the businessman and engineer – dealing with money, entrepreneurship – and on the other side we have people wasting their lives on things such as music, drugs and booze (though it’s said to be fictional daw).

Kanya-Kanyang Trip lang talaga sa buhay no? The wonders of reading. Parang narasan mo nang mabuhay sa dalawang magkaibang mundo na ito.

I’m really digging this slideshow feature by wordpress. No more messy pictures all over your blogposts. Anyway, 2 insights just to get my mind of these 2 things keeping me from doing schoolwork.

Palay on the Road: Meant to be Ran Over? Photo By Aileen Realeza

First up, Juan Flavier’s Back to the Barrios. It’s a collection of stories and experiences the doctor had while working with people from the Philippines’ Rural areas. What I liked about this book is that the Barrio folks are the heroes in the stories, and Dr. Flavier just served as a medium to share their wisdom with his readers. He let the stories speak for themselves and did not intend to preach or project himself in some grandiose way. Reading it was enjoyable, like you’re actually transported to the rice fields and plantations and the nearby poso of your barrio, conversing with the barrio folks and learning their ways. I’m probably just being romantic about this but there is a charm in the simple way of life in the rural areas. Somehow, you’re reminded not to underestimate rural folks, after all, since they actually know how to grow food compared to us city folks who’ll probably be helpless when all the conveniences of the city are taken away from us. This book also taught me a valuable lesson: not to avoid the pieces of palay laid out along the road, it is actually intended to be ran over by cars to separate the husks from the rice grain.

The Best Friend, Femme Fatale, at ang Tunay na Lalake

Next, the Korean Spy Drama IRIS [Possible SPOILER ALERT]. Now I don’t actually watch Korean Dramas since I don’t like cheesy stuff, but this drama is different. Yes, there’s still mushy-ness between the main characters but the plot is much more complex and exciting than that. Too complex that I’m having a hard time summarizing what the plot is. The story revolves around the agents of Korea’s National Secret Service – and how IRIS, a secret organization who profits from wars between countries, turned their lives upside down (this is putting it VERY simply). Action Sequences, testing of alliances, shifting friendships, betrayal, how a love triangle can fuck up anything, never a dull moment, as they say. I really loved this show that it took a lot of self control not to finish it in a single day, not to watch the next episode beyond 3AM.

I loved Jin Sa Woo’s character, the best friend at the short end of the stick of the love triangle – and how it reluctantly transformed him into the story’s main antagonist – I was really rooting that he didn’t really transform completely until the end. I also liked Seon Yeon’s femme fatale character, and Kim Seung-Woo as Park Cheol-Young as the ultimate, Tunay na Lalake. O baka kahawig niya lang yung Commander ng Maskman. Hmm..

And its that time of the year again. Intentionally placed myself in a book-buying drought just for this event, came home carrying a bagful of books. And to think that just a few months ago I offloaded my shelf by selling my books. This particular book fair is an interesting one since it was graced by a lot of authors (signing books of course), some new exhibitors, and new titles and bargain books by local presses!

Every year that I visit the MIBF, I have a different thing that I look for. This year, I was trying to see if I would be able to spot some good design books for less than 1000php. I didn’t exactly find one, but I did manage for find some interesting books aside from those sold by the usual textbook importers.

This booth by Megavision Books (I’m not sure about the name..didn’t write it down) had a lot of Design Books – Branding Books, Korean Eye-Candy Graphic Books, works by Taiwanese Designers, Manga, Manga Art Books. And as the case with Design Books, they’re not cheap. The price range was above 2000php. Got me thinking if I really need design books for myself to get better at designing – I’ll probably be better off doing designing than reading about it.

Found these babies within the National Bookstore Section. They’re imported from AVA Books Singapore and seems practical enough since its packaged as a basics series book. The books feature Design Thinking (methodologies) and Preparing Works for Print and sells for a thousand plus bucks each.

…so I guess Design Books are not cheap, and maybe the Book Fair is not the place for those, if ever they exist. Might as well try my luck in a Book Sale store. So I stopped looking for it altogether.

There were also book signings by Alexander Yates, Tado, Stanley Chi, Ambeth Ocampo, Queena Lee Chua, Randy David and Lourd de Veyra happening all in one day. I got my books signed by Tado and Sir Ambeth, hindi ko na inabutan si Lourd

Tado Signing his book, Nag-Iisa Lang Ako

Sorry Sir Ambeth, Stolen Shot

And now I happily present my Book Fair Loot – with the other freebies that I got!

This.

Pagbigyan mo na ako. Sabi nga nila kanya-kanyang trip lang talaga. And there I was surrounded by people old enough to be my parents/grandparents. Instead of spotting maybe Anne Curtis or Rockstars or some celebrities my age I saw Kuya Germs, Boots Anson-Roa, Bro. Jun Banaag of Dr. Love Radio Show fame and National Artist Eddie Romero. Going there felt like I’ve aged 20 years. I was the youngest one to deliberately (i.e. hindi hinila ni Mommy at Daddy) go to the concert. This is my old soul manifesting itself. But I digress.

The tickets were pricey, but I really understand why people would pay such a price, and even brave the storm just to be in the concert (myself included – even if I just got the Balcony seat at the Music Museum). And I guess it’s all worth it with the AMP (Asosasyon ng Musikerong Pilipino) playing under Mel Villena’s Musical direction, hearing Jed Madela’s rendition of The Impossible Dream (pang-matanda talaga, my ghed) , and watching Pilita Corales impeccably sing in Spanish like she’s not a Filipina, and of course, watching Dulce herself belt out her stuff for the whole evening – with a voice so powerful she constantly places the mic away so that it wouldn’t sound so overpowering.

Her songs were made up of the songs she missed singing – the big-band broadway-ish songs she sang in Nightclubs when she was young, tributes to the people that made her and her career, her Jukebox Hits and her praises to the Lord. I find enjoying her Filipino songs more than the English ones – might be because I cannot catch the drift the Big Band-sound that she fondly recalls singing back in the 70s.  Hindi ko siya masyadong masakyan, probably too young for that – that I realize. Or maybe its just how Filipino speaks to you and your emotions directly. Couple it with Dulce’s emotional and powerful interpretation of the songs – boom. Yun na.

Best moment of the night, her rendition of the Sharon Cuneta medley, especially Ikaw. Have me getting goosebumps and saying expletives on how powerful but soulful her voice is. Didn’t like the jazz-ified version of Paano – it was supposed to be emotional, not upbeat. Ticket price was worth it – I got an overdose of Dulce and I think I wouldn’t be listening for  a while. I’m glad she sang the original version of Ako ang Nagwagi in the beginning and the lines really stuck with me – its the ultimate Filipino Pride-Move On song:  ”Ako ang Nagwagi / Naitago ko ang Damdamin Kong Sawi / Sinong Magsasabing ito ay Mali / Kahit alaala ka bawat sandali”.

Delighted that I was able to watch one of my favorite singers and cross it out of my bucket list. I really admire Dulce for her emotional renditions and her voice – for me it really separates her from the Dime-a-Dozen singers the Philippines have. She doesn’t sound generic when she sings, her voice is soulful, reminds me of American soul singers, it can reach the lowest lows and the highest highs, vocal-wise and rendition-wise. She has restraint, she doesn’t shout. But most importantly, her renditions sound sincere and filled with feelings, may pinaghuhugutan kung baga. So sincere she can make me cry.

Cinemalaya 2011: Our Day 2!

And after a week we were back at CCP for our second batch of Cinemalaya Movies to watch: Erick Salud’s Ligo na U, Lapit na Me, Alvin Yapan’s Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa, and fortunately I was still able to get tickets for Cinemalaya’s 2 Closing Films: Quark Henares’ Rakenrol and Jade Castro’s Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington. I almost spent the whole day inside CCP save for the dinner we had at Harbor Square.

Ligo na U is a film adaptation of Eros S. Atalia’s  book of the same title, and though I haven’t read the book for myself, I was able to grasp some of the insights on religion and feminism the author was trying to impart through the book. That in itself is an accomplishment because its really challenging to translate the numerous thoughts characters often have in books into a movie without it being too wordy or too narrative. And for the mababaw comments, yes Edgar Allan Guzman was cute, and Mercedes Cabral was hot, and they totally fit the roles of the geeky paastig friend in love with his liberal best friend. Pet peeves: Did they really have to insert the Kapamilya, Kapuso and Kapatid joke in the movie? I know Edgar Allan and Shalala are both TV5 talents, pero kailangan talagang ilusot? And the Sex scenes, was it necessary? I do have the feeling though that it comprises the meat of the book so probably the movie was just being faithful to it. And yes, the movie is for mature audiences only.

MKP Hall for "..Sayaw"

Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa is tiring to watch, because you need to think and concentrate to appreciate the beauty of this film. Poetry is intertwined with Dance to explain the dynamics of the relationship of the three main characters. There were parts where Karen was trying to make a point to Dennis and she uses poetry to explain it, and when it came to the part where it really made sense, I was saying, Shit, Oo Nga no. Langya galing! The poetry is really emotional and powerful, and how it comes together in the film is really amazing. I really wished I knew the poems used so that I can refer to them to explain. Another challenge in watching this movie is watching the dance, and the actions..because a lot of communication and meaning is expressed non-verbally, through dance, through glance and you really had to watch out for those or else you’ll be missing a lot. The poster might be misleading, the themes of homosexuality is not really explicitly shown in the film, so don’t get turned off by the notion that its another gay film, its not.

And fast forward to 3 hours later, Rakenrol and Zombadings were shown as the Closing Film for this year’s Film Festival..and the screenings were around nighttime already.

Rakenrol: STAR POWER!!!

Two words for the Rakenrol screening: STAR POWER. There were celebrities everywhere, and almost 3/4 of the Orchestra section was reserved for VIPs and press people that the paying public had to occupy the third floor already. It was a bit annoying, and as my seatmate aptly put it: “Kung ganito rin lang naman, ba’t hindi nalang sila nag-pa private screening?” (If they knew that it was going to be like this, why didn’t they just hold a private screening?). If I can still call myself fortunate, I was able to line-up an hour before and occupy the front row of the Orchestra section,  where everything was freakin’ huge and dizzying.

Diego Castillo and Quark Henares does the Opening Remarks

The movie itself is charming as it is. The experience of loving OPM to bits, forming a band, the gripes of dealing with inconvenient people, reality vs the starving artist, art vs pa-art, falling in love with your best friend and talking about it in an air-conditioned room, it was authentic, yet at the same time surreal with all those musician and celebrity cameos in the film (like Ely Buendia telling you that he’s a Fan of your band, and dining with your idols at a party).

And finally, for the last film of the night, Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington. The CCP Main Theater was jam-packed with people up to the fourth floor, and somehow I ended up viewing the movie from the last floor of the 3rd floor, not being able to line up early. Never in my entire life have I seen so many gay people in one venue, as in lahat ata sila rumampa doon. 

I Sat at the farthest row of the 3rd Floor, Miles from the screen!

At the surface it is really a comedy film, and if its just comedy that you’re looking for, this will definitely not disappoint..Hahagalpak ka sa tawa! Though you can also choose to look at it for its deeper meaning or themes: how the powerful positions commonly held by men are held by Women in the film, how it was set in a rural area rather than the city, (and how rural folks view the City), the issue of homophobia, how gay people have their own language already that there needs to be subtitles for it to be understood, at paano nga kung may maka-imbento ng totoong, tangible na Gaydar? Or if you would rather not look for that, the fact that they have the most respected actors and actresses (Odette Khan, John Regala, Eugene Domingo) doing crazy stuff on film is worth the watch. The film will be shown in theaters around the last week of August so really, better catch it once it screens!

(This is a continuation of Cinemalaya 2011 Day 1 of 2)

Cinemalaya 2011

Trekked to CCP for Cinemalaya 2011 to watch our First Batch of Films. Me and my friend have decided to watch i-Libings and Ang Babae sa Septic Tank  for the first Cinemalaya weekend and the film Ligo na U, Lapit na Me and Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa on the second one. When we arrived, ang daming tao sa CCP! It was packed like I’ve never seen before.

Daming tao sa CCP

It’s interesting to notice that the crowd was mostly made up of young people, even though most of it might have been students required by their professors to watch Cinemalaya films. But I do like to think that the younger generation is more interested in art stuff, and its not really a bad thing to require students to watch Cinemalaya movies, para mabahiran ng kultura ang mga katawan nila, as my friend aptly puts it.

Some and quick musings on today’s watched films:

1. Thank God i-Libings was worth the wait. The Glaiza de Castro starrer was witty and accessible enough, even though it tackled an issue as heavy as death. Galing ni Earl Ignacio, and Glaiza too, especially on her speaking piece during the last part. It had a lot of those blurry to clear shots though, na parang na-uuso na ata ngayon. I had my doubts if it’ll work with a movie like this, parang nagiging pa-art..pero okay lang..I guess it worked in the long run. Quotable Quotes: “Hindi lahat ng Namamatay, Santo.“
2. Ang Babae sa Septic Tank was no doubt funny in a lot of ways, Chris Martinez wrote it, and Eugene Domingo starred in it (her acting was eerieely real, by the way) so I wouldn’t be surprised. However, I think it ended abruptly, it had me saying Yun lang? afterwards…though it might’ve been intentional, representing how abrupt real life events can snap someone out of an artsy stupor. The movie makes you want to ask yourself, what’s the point of making movies about poverty when all you can do is make yourself famous by doing so and not really being part of the solution.
3. What’s with Cigarettes and Indie Movies…all the characters seem to do it. Glinogorify na ba ang pag-yoyosi ngayon?
4. A Nice Surprise was learning that Eugene Domingo and Chris Martinez was at the audience area watching the film. Siyempre, maraming nag-papicture.

Eugene Domingo and Chris Martinez being mobbed by the crowd

Going thru the whole experience, these are things I think that should be remembered when going to a festival like this one:

• Buy tickets REALLY EARLY, As in a month early if possible. We went to buy tickets last June, so we didn’t have problems about scheduling, and we get to watch the movies we actually wanted to watch. But for those who were trying to buy tickets at the festival itself, it’ll really be a hassle. The lines are long and there’s a big possibility of a movie getting sold out, especially the CCP weekend screenings. Gone are the days wherein you could just come in and buy a ticket on the spot, that was Cinemalaya way back 2005…its now 2011 and is now more popular.
• Buy your tickets at ticketnet outlets, aside from the one in CCP. Did I mention the line was very long?
• Go to the venue at least an hour before. All movies are on a free seating basis, and you would want to get the best seats in the house right..?
• Students get as much as 50% discount on tickets, so if the ticketnet lady does not mention it to you, make sure that you claim your student discount.

A bummer for Cinemalaya 2011 though is that they announced the complete line up only a week before (or then again I might’ve been not religiously checking schedules)…so there would be a rush to buy tickets for those non-competition films that you would want to watch, such as Rakenrol, Zombadings: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington, and Senior Year. By the time I bought Rakenrol at ticketnet, there were only 2 tickets left. Closing Film 1: Rakenrol = 23 Jul 2011 0900 PM Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo, Closing Film 2: Zombadings = 23 Jul 2011 Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo 1145 PM, Senior Year 17 Jul 2011 0900 PM, Tanghalang Manuel Conde

Aside from sending Philippine View cards, I also make it a point to send Design Postcards abroad. Its really hard to find Design Postcards since they’re not usually sold in bookstores – you’ll have to scour the artsy/pa-art/hipster bazaars and stores every December, or the interwebs for artists selling postcards of their work. This particular postcard by Tof Zapanta was received pretty well with 5 likes. Its like you’re broadcasting Philippine Design to the world in your own little way. This little piece of design has made its way to Japan.

Postcards Yey!

This afternoon, I’ve sent another 2 postcards with Commemorative Stamps for Rizal’s 150th year – these 2 stamps in Red and Blue featuring the winning design of Team Manila designers Ramon Vizmonte and Ritzh Sales – is now making their way to the US and Kazakhstan. Nakakatuwa lang isipin na may Pinoy design na nakakarating sa Kazakhstan. Sorry naman, mababaw lang ako.